Through Their Eyes Korrlok
by jonathan.brutt
Summary: Korra and Tarrlok continue to fight the remaining Equalists and find themselves in a whirlwind romance. Will they fight their feelings or struggle to leave them behind.
1. Chapter 1

Through Their Eyes ~ Korrlok

A Girl, A Boy, A Ballroom, and a Tragedy… Chapter 1

The Ballroom looked enormous to Korra's eyes. Everything in the huge room was decorated in blue and white colors. Watertribe colors. Korra, along with Tenzin and Pema were still at the door, was trying hard to figure what to do in a party where she knew no one. Korra prayed she hadn't made a huge mistake by coming. Her blue dress was reaching down to her ankles and her hair was down, apart from a topknot and her usual front tails.

Even though he had his apprehension about the event, Tarrlok appeared to his promoters with his usual air of superiority. No one could say "no" to him for long. As he thanked Mr. Sato for his most recent generous donation, Tarrlok turned his head towards the entrance and knew - Korra had arrived. Korra never had a problem attracting attention. Her expressions of giddy excitement were unlike her usual uninterested sarcastic side she constantly used. Tarrlok made his way through the center of the ballroom to greet her.

From a rather young age, Korra had never felt un-noticed or abandoned. The attention just came straight to her just because she was the Avatar. Although she enjoyed it, at times it could be rather annoying as the slightest mistake always became a scandal to the people. She looked back. Tenzin had made his way to greet a few old friends and colleagues. Finally, Korra knew she'd be "unsupervised" for a while. The young Avatar's eye caught Tarrlok coming towards her. Now the reporters wouldn't leave her alone for sure. She took a deep breath and slowly walked towards the water bending master wearing her most charming smile.

"Why Korra, quite nice of you to join me." Tarrlok had a way of controlling his surroundings. With the wave of his hand, his personal manservant was gone and back again with two punch drinks. Korra avidly accepted the treat as the crowd began to disperse. She raised her head to meet his eyes, "Thanks for having me, no one has ever thrown such a large party for me." With a gentle smile, He turned away from her to admire the room. "Go ahead and enjoy yourself. We can talk later, but your teammates arrived earlier so I'm sure you'll find them." She gave Tarrlok a warm half-smile as she darted off towards the buffet where she guessed she'd find Mako.

Sadly, when she located Mako, she noticed Asami clinging on to him. The young Avatar stopped before the two could see her. She felt a sting of jealousy. Deciding it wasn't the right time to think of it, she headed the opposite way and leaned against a wall, where she'd be hardly noticeable. The lights were suddenly lowered making Korra look around as she sipped her drink. The music changed to a slow, danceable track. Many of the guests formed couples and started to dance. Even Tenzin and Pema seemed to be enjoying themselves. Korra crooked a half-smile at the sight. She looked down at her feet. Suddenly, she felt weird she hadn't found a date and Bolin wasn't there.

Tarrlok smiled as Korra had darted off and encouraged the band to play a waltz. Heading towards the southern exit, Tarrlok greeted the paparazzi and told them that they would get their questions answered by the avatar very soon. As he headed towards the dance floor, he found Korra standing alone in the crowd. Rescuing her from the awkward moment, Tarrlok told her, "Obviously you're not the dancing type, how about we go and talk about your dreams for Republic City." It was less of a question and more of a statement. Korra watched everyone dance and felt a sting of jealousy once again. Hearing Tarrlok's voice, she was awakened from her thoughts. "It's not like that." she waved a hand. "I love to dance..." a slight blush covered her cheeks. "It seems I forgot to bring a partner..." she mumbled, looking at the dance floor. "I don't think I'm ready to speak out yet. Do you think 'they' can wait a little longer?" she asked hopefully.

With an almost annoyed sigh, Tarrlok curled the corners of his lips upward and met her gaze. "May I have this dance? Korra blinked, rather surprised for a few seconds, thinking she hadn't heard correctly. But she had. She hesitated for a moment, before feeling a sudden urge to accept the offer. She nodded formally. "Sure."

As they joined together in a classic waltz, it was three minutes well spent. Their bodies moved seamlessly together, as if they had done it before. Several times Tarrlok pulled her close, among the twirls, foot pops, and the touch of skin there was no denying her beauty. It wasn't long till Tarrlok spotted Bolin leaning against the wall with an unreadable expression from such a distance away. With the changing music, Korra retreated her arms and Tarrlok gave her an almost embarrassed half-smile. "I think Bolin is looking for you. He's over there. Maybe when you're done we can talk."

Korra followed the councilman's look and spotted Bolin down at the buffet. She raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know Bolin was coming." she mumbled. "And apparently, he looks busy." she added, seeing a tall red-haired woman walking towards him. With another sting of jealousy, Korra eyed Asami and the other woman as competition. While that girl was clearly ten times more pretty and fifteen times more womanly than Korra, she knew that as the avatar she should be clearly superior. Even with that reassuring thought, the Avatar just felt unnoticed and for the first time it was readable on her facial expressions.

Just at that moment, Tarrlok placed his hands on her shoulders. "Oh, Korra is your usual confidence just an act or should I just take you to your friends myself?" He smirked. Turning towards him, she tilted her head. "I don't want to talk to them now..." she mumbled, taking her gaze from the boys and letting it rest upon the man in front of her. "Well then you better just come with me and we can get off this dance floor and do something more relaxing." Lifting his right arm for her to hold as an invitation to be escorted off, Tarrlok glanced over towards the impatient paparazzi. She nodded, slipping her arm around his. "Sounds like a plan." she spoke, smiling slightly at the thought of relaxing a bit. It had been a tough week.

As they walked away from the dance floor, Tarrlok couldn't help but notice the paparazzi swarming towards them from the door like locusts. Korra inched closer to the man as if she feared the paparazzi would bite her sooner or later. Although she was curious, she didn't ask where they were going. She just followed. Korra pulled Tarrlok with her to follow the camera men and reporters to a window. Voices swirled around Tarrlok, "equalists..." "no way" "fire?!" "In republic city!?" "The police can take them down." "What about the fire!?" Tarrlok and Korra could see a plume of smoke appear over the city and bright flashes of light not more than a half mile away.

Korra's eyes widened. "Oh, no..." she mumbled staring at the smoke with terror, then turning to look at Tarrlok to see his reaction. She was already freaking out. Tarrlok was frightened and saw his own feelings reflected in Korra's eyes. In order to prove himself to the city as a worthwhile congressman, he jumped through the open window and caught himself in the river. "What are you waiting for Korra? An invitation?" Korra watched Tarrlok jumping through the window. She had to do something to help him any way possible. When he shouted at her to come down, she didn't need another minute of thought. She jumped out of the window landing almost onto him.

Tarrlok grabbed Korra and together they slingshot themselves through the air to get close to the action. The metal benders were too busy fighting chi blockers while the fire spread roof to roof. The whole city would burn if they didn't act fast. Even though the two of them stayed clear of the flames, the sheer heat threatened to burn their eyes and skin. Korra ran as fast as possible after Tarrlok, who had a grip of her wrist. "You have a plan?" she breathed out as they ran. Tarrlok assuredly assessed the situation, "There's a water vent over there. We'll rain on the city with as much water as we can pull from each vent. By that point the airships should be here with water for us to bend."

Seeing she hadn't anything better in mind, she acquiesced. They ran for a few seconds towards the nearest water vent until Korra noticed a chi-blocker running towards Tarrlok, ready to hit. "Watch it!" she yelled pulling the Councilman back and bending an earth wall on which the enemy fell onto. "You need to watch yourself." she sighed in relief.

"Thanks but I can handle myself." Tarrlok nailed the assailant with a blast of water to knock him out against the ground. She rolled her eyes. "I didn't see it." she teased playfully, bending the water towards the fire, along with his help. Together they pulled out water from the vents and launched it at the rooftops. "There's a non-bender on the roof over there." Without any warning, Tarrlok catapulted Korra on top of the building.

Korra screamed as she flew through the air and landed on the roof with a thud that threatened to break down the whole building. It was an adolescent girl and she looked terrified. Korra grabbed the young non-bender and made a path through the fire with her water bending, in order to get her safely down. The kid ran off towards safety as soon as she stepped on solid ground. "Next time, I'd like a warning." she frowned at Tarrlok. "Whatever you wish" Tarrlok sarcastically nodded. Within minutes the airships had come and supplied water. Tarrlok catapulted towards the water and pelted the remaining fires. He smiled to himself. In his mind he knew his position of power, there would be a time when the city recognized him as their savior. Korra could tell by the look in his eye, his mind was working in its own selfish way. She shook her head lightly. "At least, this is over." she snorted lightly. "And next time, I'll just let the chi-blocker get you." she smirked, giving a playful punch to his arm. With a self-confident smile Tarrlok responded, "Well, at least we make a good team. I'm not sure what the equalists were trying to accomplish."

Korra tilted her head slightly. "I think we should be getting to the party. People will notice our absence. Plus, Tenzin will think you're up to something." she raised an eyebrow. In mock surprise, Tarrlok laughed, "When am I not up to something?" The paparazzi couldn't get enough pictures of the Avatar and the Councilmen upon their return. Tenzin and the family were next to Korra, Tenzin erratically questioned Korra, "Are you alright?" "What of Republic City?" "Did Tarrlok put you up to this?" "That's true actually..." she shrugged. Korra was rather annoyed by the questions and the papparazi's offensive cameras. "I'm okay Tenzin..." she mumbled to the councilman, giving an assuring smile, before glancing at Tarrlok who was filled with pride. She nudged his ribs. "Don't get full of yourself, oh, great savior." she smirked. Although he felt like scowling at the young avatar, Tarrlok kept a somewhat pleased expression for the cameras.

Korra answered a few innocent questions for the reporters and waved as Tenzin and Pema as they headed home. She gave an awkward laugh and nudged Tarrlok again. "Can we _please_ get away from the cameras?" she almost pleaded. "Since when do you ask for permission?" with a smirk Tarrlok replied. "Heading home? Or would you like to investigate the fire with me? It's only 9. The night is young."

"Investigating the fire sounds more interesting than going to bed." she nodded. "It's a rather pretty night too, for being inside." she gave a charming grin.


	2. Chapter 2

Aftermath Chapter 2

Tarrlok got to work. "We already know who started the fire, now we need to solve the 'how' and 'why'." Walking quickly out the door towards his Satomobile, Tarrlok held Korra's hand. He hadn't intended to be quite so forceful, but it's not like they had time to lose. Every second that passed brought the possibility of evidence being destroyed or lost. "Why?" Korra huffed. "Isn't it obvious? The Equalists want to destroy us. They'd do anything to achieve it." she frowned lightly, holding his hand tightly as they headed towards the Satomobile. "Any idea where the investigation should start?" she asked.

"Come on Korra, the Equalists started a fire in an area that I don't consider to have any tactical advantage. I don't think their intent was just to ruin your party. No, I'm positive they had another motive in mind. I'll head over to the police headquarters to see if they've gathered any intelligence already, and I'll meet up with you near the area of the fire. I'll find you." Korra swallowed, her grip around his hand tightening. "N-no." she argued. "If we separate we can easily be ambushed. We have to work together." she spoke.

With an annoyed sigh Tarrlok relented. "Fine. But, if you slow me down then I won't hesitate to leave you behind. Lets hurry." Korra took shotgun in Tarrlok's Satomobile, hitting the gas, they sped off towards the station. Tarrlok hit several of the turns a little too hard causing Korra to lose her balance and hit the side of the seat a few too many times. She seemed dazed when he slammed on the brakes at the station.

Korra caught her forehead. "I feel sick..." she mumbled, but forced herself out of the car. She didn't intend to be left behind. Not only because she was worried about herself, but odly, she had a feeling he'd be in trouble without her. Despite his earlier warning, Tarrlok waited a second before heading up the stairs. As Korra started up the stairs next to him she tripped, Tarrlok barely managed to catch her fall. "Watch where you're going and get a hold of yourself."

The Councilman's crazy driving had made Korra lose contact with the environment at some point, causing her to almost fall. Her eyes widened as she awaited her head to crash on the floor but she was more than thankful he had caught her. "It's your driving's fault..." she mumbled, grabbing his arm, just in case. "But thanks for not letting me fall." "Next time I might get a kick out of the entertainment value" he smirked. Korra frowned and nudged his side with her elbow.  
They ran up the remaining stairs and Tarrlok opened the door for himself and it almost closed by the time Korra manage through. "Lin!" Tarrlok was quick to grab her attention. She came over with her usual frown. "Have you found any evidence about the fire?" Tarrlok was eager and she spoke calmly. "All we know is that the Equalists started the fire. We are still creating a tally of all the injured from the area. There is a possibility that someone may have been kidnapped. Now let me do my job." With a huff, she disappeared through a "Do Not Enter" door that lead to the Intelligence Quarters.

Korra gave him a frown. "You almost killed me with that door." she mumbled, annoyed. "So, no information yet..." the Avatar sighed. "Shall we just let them investigate it. Beifong won't be happy if we mess around with 'her job'." she rolled her eyes.

"Since when do I care what anybody else wants? I usually do my own investigation." Headed out the door and down the stairs, Tarrlok jumped back in his car and waited just long enough for Korra to get in. With a condescending glance Tarrlok didn't give her time to talk, "You're in no position to join this investigation so I'll drop you off at the dock and I'll continue on my own."

In a childish yet convincing way, Korra folded her arms and frowned again. "No. I'm coming with you." she insisted, her blue eyes narrowing. "I'm the Avatar and it's my job to restore balance to the world. Besides," she smirked teasingly. "You might need me to watch your back again."

"Too bad." Tarrlok made it to the dock in record time. With a steely glance, Tarrlok pushed Korra to understand his reasoning, "Restore balance to your brain by going back to air temple island and get some sleep."

"I don't need any sleep!"Korra snapped, fighting with his arms and finally managing to climb into the Satomobile again. "I'm coming, whether you like it or not." she declared in a manner, hard to disagree with. Tarrlok stopped fighting and continued driving.

Another set of her impudence and Tarrlok was ready to call Tenzin to pick up his resident child. He hadn't thought she'd be such an annoyance. If she'd just accepted his leadership than she might have uncovered enough information by the time he'd contacted Beifong. Tarrlok stopped the car near the center of where the fire had been. He hadn't expected so much devastation. Even with their quick assistance there were about ten buildings completely burned to the ground and a dozen more damaged possibly beyond repair. Troubled, Tarrlok frowned as he mentally calculated that the damages would be well into the tens of thousands of yuans to repair or rebuild.

Korra looked around the damaged part of the city, remaining silent. She wasn't sure if there was anything they could do, but she'd help any way she could since she felt utterly disappointed with herself. For so long she was unable to help, but she determined to start doing it from now on. She turned to the councilman, who was silent as well and looked to be deeply in thought. "What's on your mind?" she asked quietly.

Pain, rage, and helplessness filled Tarrlok. He wasn't sure how to respond to Korra's prodding. "Tomorrow... we-e.. we'll deal with this tomorrow." The Avatar placed a hand on the Councilman's shoulder. "It's going to be okay..." she mumbled, giving him an assuring smile. Tarrlok found himself comforted by the gesture, but it only loosened the frown. Somehow he was still unsure who were the intended victims. How many benders and non-benders had the Equalists harmed? They haven't waged a war against benders, they've waged a war against everyone in Republic City. "They will pay." he growled. "I'll see you later." Without waiting for her response Tarrlok dashed off towards the ocean. He needed to cleanse himself by communing with water.

Korra sighed and followed him. "Tell me what's on your mind." she insisted. "Master Katara says you let the pain or guilt go by trusting it to someone." she explained, walking beside him. "I promise I'll keep it a secret." she smiled, her eyes shining under the full moon.

Although Tarrlok softened under her gaze, he wished to be alone. For a second, Tarrlok imagined that he could make a cocoon of water to distract the young Avatar and ditch her in the city. It wasn't beyond him to create such an illusion, but the thought of leaving her alone wasn't a pleasing idea. He stopped his mad dash towards the ocean.

"You can't keep yourself braced forever." she argued. "Just tell me what's on your mind." Her hand travelled down from his shoulder to his arm and finally taking his hand and holding it, in an attempt to make him loosen up a bit. Tarrlok and Korra sat down on a nearby bench. He hadn't intended to bear his soul to her, but they were hear now. "Korra..." his mouth trembled... "I can't bear to see the devastation. Even though we acted as quickly as we could, I'm sure some died and I blame the Equilists... and myself... There must be a better way to deal with these situations..."

Korra listened to him carefully, her eyes glittering deep inside her, she knew similar guilt. "If anyone is to blame, it's me." she mumbled quickly. "I'm the Avatar! I'm supposed to help people! But I don't!" she burst out. "I don't do anything!"

He longed to comfort her, and for the first time stroked her shoulder. "It's alright. They'll find justice eventually." For a minute it was as if all problems drifted away as Tarrlok drifted into her dazzling, deep blue eyes. Such innocence she possessed, somehow he knew that it wouldn't be long before that purity was gone. She smiled lightly as she and Tarrlok locked gazes with one another. Korra just then noticed he had pretty eyes just like hers. She scooted a little closer, when Oogi's grunt drew her attention. Her face fell as she saw the Airbender. With a tense face, Tenzin greeted them. "Tarrlok, she should have been at Air Temple Island hours ago!" Korra felt belittled for being chided like a common child. "Come on Tenzin. It's to early for bed." she argued.


	3. Chapter 3

A Fool's Gamble Chapter 3

Tarrlok reclined in his office quarters listening to the dull splashing sounds that his waterfall backdrop produced. 10am and he was already tired. Although he'd been in the office for years, the sound still had a calming effect that tranquilized all his issues. It had been a week since Korra's banquet and she hadn't made the effort to contact him since the fire. She'd touched him. There had only ever been one woman that showed him any kind of affection. His mother. The idea that anyone would show him any kind of sympathy was staggering. Suddenly, a knock on the door startled the councilman out of his water-induced trance. His eyes lifted to see his butler. Tarrlok despised the hefty stack of papers the man placed on his desk. It seemed like every day there was always more work to do. It was times like these Tarrlok contemplated why he even wanted this position in the first place.

As he scanned the list of topics, Tarrlok sifted through the material to see if there was anything pertaining to the Avatar. His search led him to a simple request from Tenzin requesting a building permit for the creation of another farm on Air Temple Island. Even though Tenzin was also a councilman, he still needed to go through the same process as everyone else. Submit a proposal, wait for a response, and hope for the best. Tarrlok lifted his quill to sign, but decided instead to sign it in Tenzin's presence. Even though Tenzin assumed the worst, Tarrlok still had to try to win him over. Looking at the rest of stack, Tarrlok sighed deeply. He couldn't just abandon all those papers could he? He smiled to himself, "Of course I can. I can do whatever I want." Tarrlok grabbed the document and headed out the door towards his Satomobile. His butler warned him about upcoming deadlines, but his requests fell on deaf ears. "Too bad for him." Tarrlok smirked.

The day before, Korra had traveled from the South Pole back to the Republic City. Although she'd missed her home, the City felt a lot more familiar to the young Avatar. Besides, she had something to achieve. She wanted to master blood bending. Tarrlok was the only one who would possibly agree to teach her, so she decided to take a risk and sneak in his office the next day. Leaving Naga at the Air Temple, she headed to Republic City. With her earth bending, she got herself to the closest window and jumped in looking around. No one was around. Probably Tarrlok was gone and would be back. She sat on the closest couch and waited. Her eyes were closing slowly, until she was asleep by the time he returned.

When Tarrlok had gone to the air temple he was positive that he would find Korra there, but she wasn't there. Tenzin was surprised by the morning visit and grateful for the permit. As Tarrlok headed back to the office, he frustratedly considered all the work he had left. It would take most of the day to finish it all, and that was assuming there wouldn't be any distractions. Entering his Office in the late afternoon, the councilmen headed towards his office in deep thought. Thoughtfully, he lifted up his quill to continue his work.

Tarrlok's quill signed signature after signature on papers he cared very little about. Why read something that had no meaning? The very idea that he had to approve every little permit, organization, even to make marriages legal by recording them in the library. "I didn't sign up for this." Without looking, Tarrlok tossed the quill nonchalantly at the couch.

Korra almost jumped feeling the quill hit her head. She awoke and rubbed her eyes. "Hey! What was that for?" she frowned.

Tarrlok jumped from his seat ready to take down the intruder. He hadn't seen Korra sleeping on his blue, leather sofa. She'd blended in perfectly. "Korra! What are you doing here!?" Tarrlok asserted and frustratedly put his hands on his hips. "I was just at Air Temple Island and you weren't there. Now I get back to my desk and you're just sleeping on my sofa. How did you even get in here?!" Feeling violated, Tarrlok was irate.

Korra yawned and stretched, to give Tarrlok a second to cool off, she glanced up at him and spoke. "I need to ask you something." she cautiously stated, wanting him to agree at any cost. She sighed before continuing. "I want you to teach me how to blood bend." she demanded, raising an eyebrow. Without a word, Tarrlok walked confidently towards the door and exited the room. His straight face quickly turned terrified frown. Somehow, the idea that anyone would want to learn how to blood bend was an insane idea. There isn't anything left of a benders humanity after they've learned the ultimate skill, no innocence is left.

She waited and after a few moments, Korra followed him. "I was almost sure you'd be surprised by my request." she spoke quietly. "But I need to learn this technique."

His face was grave. "No water bender should ever be taught the technique." Tarrlok started to pace and used his hands to gesticulate his words as he continued. "The very idea that you want to learn it is what bothers me. When a water bender becomes a master of the ability, it ends up becoming the trump card that can only be countered by the Avatar State or a water bender of equal or greater ability in blood bending. My father is proof that blood bending breeds corruption and instability. Even if you were capable at such a difficult skill, it would only cause you to be more unstable than you already are! You'd probably end up abusing blood bending as a way to extort people giving you whatever you want! Is that what you want? To be the unstable, self-depreciating avatar that eventually creates the imbalance in the world?!"

Korra blinked, astonished by the Councilman's statements. She didn't want to be a bad Avatar. She just felt vulnerable, not knowing this kind of power. "B-but... The Avatar must be powerful..." he replied in a slight whisper, looking up at him. "Please."

With a deep sigh, Tarrlok relented. "I'm going to regret this, but if you're bent on learning then you'll either learn with me or be rejected by Katara. However, in return for your training, I need you to do me a favor." Tarrlok smirked.

Korra grinned, hearing his response but her expression switched to curiosity when he mentioned a favor. "A favor?" she asked unsure. "W-what favor?"

"Well, at the moment I'm not entirely sure, but sometime in the future I'm going to have a request and you're going to do it without reserve."

Korra frowned. "It depends on what it is..." she muttered, a little annoyed.

"Nothing comes for free, I only need your word that sometime in the future you'll support me publicly when your recommendation decides the future of Republic City. Although it won't be too scandalous.

Korra glared at him lightly for a second, before sighing. "Fine." she agreed, folding her arms. "But nothing beyond that." she warned.

With a smile, Tarrlok responded, "Excellent! I'm as good as my word. How about you come with me to my estate for dinner. We can discuss the details where there won't be any potential people listening in. Besides, blood bending IS illegal."

Korra nodded casually. "Now?" she asked, curiously, straightening her clothing and fixing her hair.

"Yes, as soon as you can guarantee that Tenzin won't be looking for you."

She shook her head. "He won't." she assured, nodding.

"Then let us be on our way." Tarrlok offered her his arm to escort her to his Satomobile, which she accepted. He had one of his butlers call ahead to have a second meal crafted. A short time later, Tarrlok had his car up and running and they were speeding towards his home. The driveway was the largest Korra had ever seen. Not even Asami must have had such a magnificent mansion. While the front yard had three fountains surrounded with roses, tulips, and other flowers, from her view she couldn't see the back yard, but she guessed it that it must be similarly adorned with fountains and flowers.

"This place is beautiful!" she exclaimed. "We sure don't have those stuff in the Water Tribe." she noticed, turning to him. "Do you ever miss the North Pole?" she asked hesitantly.

With practiced poise, Tarrlok shifted towards her slightly and calmly stated, "It has its place, but I don't think my body was ever meant for the freezing temperatures of the North Pole. I'd rather be warm in mansion that I built on the fringe of Republic City. Both my parents are dead and I never really had any friends in the North Pole, so there really isn't anything left for me there." He pulled to a stop in front of the main entrance and exited the vehicle. Korra let herself out and they headed towards the door. One of his many butlers took away the car and another opened the main door and escorted them too the dining room. A gigantic chandelier decorated with glass, diamonds, and turquoise hung from the ceiling. From the inside, it let out a calming greenish blue light that had a soothing effect on the mind. The diamonds and glass merely helped to show the beauty of the turquoise that many considered of little value.

"Oh...I see..." she replied, rather regretting to have asked him. The mansion looked enormous to Korra. She looked around dizzily, stunned by the luxury. "This place is unbelievable..." he breathed.

There were two seats at a mahogany square table and two first course salads waiting to be consumed. With the flip of Tarrlok's finger, two men were by their sides to help into their chairs. Seated face to face, Tarrlok and Korra began the meal.

"Well, that's impressive..." Korra smirked raising an eyebrow and giving a charming smile. "I wish service at home was as good." she shrugged, trying her salad.

"Meh, their service only costs money and fortunately, I've got plenty of it from being a councilmen. The city pays me handsomely. In fact, you should consider joining politics at some point. The avatar would gain plenty of public support."

Korra shook her head. "Nah. I prefer to stay away from politics..." he replied, pinching some lettuce with the fork and nomming on it. "I don't want to attract more attention than this I already have. I'll leave some for you." she teased, raising an eyebrow, her leg nudging his under the table.

The nudge made his nerve ending go wild. Tarrlok gave a smile as he took another bite, he noted her voluptuous beauty. It was always obvious that she had curves, but the blue green shadows enhanced her natural beauty without the need for make up. Finishing his salad only a minute or two after Korra, Tarrlok waived over the valet who promptly removed both of their empty bowls. "I hope you like Northern Water Tribe grub." Tarrlok winked at her. A minute later the chef revealed three small bowls to the two of them. The first had egg noodles topped with a light, crème sauce, while the second and third bowls had bacon asparagus and filet of cod respectively. Finally, the chef poured two small glasses with slightly alcoholic white wine before leaving to the kitchen.

Korra blushed slightly when he winked, but the color immediately faded away as the chef arrived. The avatar licked her lips, willing to try everything. She pushed a finger in the crème sauce and sucked on it. "Well, that's of interest. And, yes, grub is tasty. We have it in the Southern Tribe too." she smiled lightly, picking her fork up as she tried the cod. Everything was so well prepared. Pema was a good cook for sure, but her cooking skills were nothing compared to this. "So..." she spoke to break the silence, her foot nudging him again as she lifted her head to face him, her blue eyes glowing seductively.

"I'm glad you like it. Now it's down to business. We won't be disturbed for a while now that we've been served. My valet won't be back till I ring for him."

"Well, then..." she sighed, slightly disappointed by the response. "What do you want to talk about?" she asked, picking on her food.

"You don't remember? I'm going to tell you what will be required for you to become a master blood bender and it's not going to be easy."

"I meant exactly..." she raised an eyebrow. "Something specific you'd want." Korra sighed. "I know... I have learned to move small parts of small animals' bodies, like the ears or tails, but only during the full moon and if I'm very concentrated."

"What I want? I'm not sure yet." Tarrlok moved closer to the end of his seat. "Blood bending takes more than concentration. You as a water bender have the ability to bend water that you can't see. Blood bending is like bending water you can't see, but because blood is denser than water it requires more natural strength. When you bend a blood, you're bending the molecules in the body so you have the ability to control the body down to a cellular level. At the time of the next full moon we'll need to plan a trip to a remote area to practice.

"Do I get to practice on you?" she smirked, her eyes flashing as her foot nudged his leg a bit higher. She liked to tease people, especially when they were challenging themselves and Tarrlok was one challenging dude for Korra. Even Tenzin wasn't this bad.

Tarrlok's eyes became almost like slits, "Possibly, but animals are first. You'll eventually need to try to blood bend me so you can feel the sensation of a superior water bender overcoming your grip."

She smirked at him narrowing his eyes. "I promise not to completely break you." She teased playfully.

A smile returned to Tarrlok's face as he responded, "I hope you aren't squeamish. By my estimation you only have about five days before this months full moon and I only have one training requirement for you before that time comes."

"I see..." she replied, trying to sound calm, but her heart was racing. She worried she wouldn't be strong enough so as to blood bend.

"This may sound intimidating, but your first lessons you'll need to bend your own blood."

Korra's eyes widened and the fork slipped from her fingers. "You're crazy. I can't do that!?"

Tarrlok created a wide smile from the previous straight line of a face heartily laughed. "I don't mean inside your body. At some point you'll bleed and I need you to bend your own body by bending your own blood outside your body. You'll be more attune to your blood external to your body."

Korra was already freaked out. "You've lost your mind! That is not how it should work! I know Master Katara bent one of her enemies for the first time, without real instruction!"

"She did overcome Hama, my great grandmother, but she was never that strong of a bender to overcome a young master, in fact, Hama never even finished her training before she was taken by the fire nation during the 100 year war.

Korra frowned. "Yeah, but still. Bending my own blood is more than creepy..."

Sternly he told her, "If you want to become the strongest blood bender possible you'll need to start with lesson 1. Katara never became a master in blood bending even though she did learn the skill."

"But I can't do that!" Korra whined desperately. "There must be another way!"

"And why not?! Your blood won't even try to reject your control. You're bound to walk into a door and a nose bleed at some point."

"I-I don't know..." she sighed.

Tarrlok stopped eating enunciated his every syllable, "I will not tolerate any disrespect to my methods." With a smirk he lightened his mood, "If you don't like my methods than maybe you should find someone else to teach you."

"There must be another way! Maybe skipping step number one?" she asked, grinning innocently, kicking his foot under the table lightly.

He did not reciprocate. "We've been over this already. Does Tenzin let you skip steps? Oh wait he did once didn't he? That one time when he needed you to bend a wisp of air and then you failed step one and so you learned everything else, but you couldn't bend air so what was the point? If you don't pass my first lessons then there is no point. You can't be squeamish to bend your own blood and you need to actually possess the ability to bend blood."

"I can't do that! It's both creepy and sick!" she shuddered. "Bending someone's blood is already creepy, but bending my own blood... I don't think I can do this..." she sighed, getting off of her chair and walking towards the closest window, leaning against it and looking out.

With a deep sigh, Tarrlok leaned against the back of his chair. He wondered to himself, "She is the avatar, maybe she can be a blood bender. After all, it will do me no good to reject her as a student." Tarrlok accepted the situation.

Korra was lost in thought during this large pause. Asami seemed to be clinging to Mako again, which annoyed Korra the most. It felt like she was powerless to do anything. "The thing is... I don't know whether I am actually strong enough to do this. I know I have to master the skill, as the Avatar, but it might be one of the worst experiences so far..."

"That's something you'll need to decide for yourself. I can tell you that it's much more difficult then learning the average moves of all the other elements."

"Easy for you to say... You're old...enough. I'm only 17 years old and I have to protect the whole world. It's not exactly easy."

"I'm old am I? Well you're too young and you've been doing a bang-up-job trying to protect the world. If you hurry up and just agree and get Lesson 1 over with then maybe you could learn blood bending and start actually having a trump card against the Equalists."

Korra huffed. "You don't know what you're talking about! I have responsibilities you never will! You don't know what it's like so stop criticizing me all the time and help me instead!"

"Help yourself by respecting my abilities, I want to help you learn blood bending, but in your little Avatar world you have this fantasy about the responsibilities you have and then blame me for criticizing when I can clearly see that you're too scared to do what's right. Currently, I'm one of five council members keeping peace in Republic City. More or less, we're doing your job because you don't even know how to act in public to be a pinnacle of society. If you can't respect me enough to follow my instruction then you should run home to the South Pole and try to forget that you were ever chosen to be the next avatar." Lifting himself out of his chair, Tarrlok walked over beside Korra, "You either step to the plate and learn blood bending, or you decide to go back to Air Temple and forget that you ever had a chance at becoming strong enough to lead the people hold the peace.

Korra's anger was growing, bottling up inside her, ready to break out any time soon. She wanted to slap him, or to just shove him. Instead, she turned to face him, glaring daggers as she was to proud to admit she was scared. "Fine. Fine! I will follow your instruction and I will learn blood bending as I am supposed to! And you better not speak of stuff you don't know. I am only 17 and I have tons of responsibilities. I don't think you did have Equalists attacking you and your friends, knowing they actually only wanted you!" Korra barked at him, furiously. She wanted him to realize, it wasn't exactly easy for her either to be the Avatar and sometimes she wished she wasn't.


	4. Chapter 4

Well Matched… Chapter 4

Korra was looking out of the car, staying silent. Since they exchanged a formal greeting earlier, they hadn't spoken again. Tarrlok drove them to the outskirts of the City. Korra was looking around bored, as nothing seemed to get her thoughts off of what was about to happened. She was nervous, very nervous. She was terrified of failure and of giving in to her weaknesses. Tenzin was unaware of her going to learn blood bending. She had told him that she'd be training with Mako and Bolin even though she hadn't seen them for days. Mako was probably with Asami again. Korra huffed loudly, gaining Tarrlok's attention for a moment.

"What's on your mind? Having second thoughts after you bended a drop of your own blood?" He didn't dare take his eyes off the road even though there weren't any other satomobiles in site.

"I'm not having second thoughts..." she growled. "I said I will learn how to blood bend, and I will." she added decisively, even though she wasn't exactly a hundred percent sure about this anymore.

Pleased with her response he replied, "Good, because we're almost there and it won't be long till we start feeling the effects of the full moon."

"Don't feel all bad if I get to beat your butt." she smirked, teasingly, knowing she wasn't good enough to blood bend a whole human's body.

Tarrlok smirked knowingly. She may have the talent, but it would take a few months minimum for her to have complete control of her natural abilities.

Korra glanced out of the window again. "Are we there yet?" she asked impatiently. Really, she felt like she could use some help, but she'd master the skill sooner or later.

"Do you ever stop whining?" He smiled and raised an eyebrow. The sky had pink hue as the sun was setting. While the cabin was only about five minutes away, Tarrlok found himself anticipating her training.

"Nope. Never." she teased, grinning back. He rarely smiled, but when he did, Korra felt sort of relaxed. Even the thought of blood bending didn't seem so terrifying. When the satomobile stopped, Korra hopped off, straightening out her clothing. "Finally..." she stretched. "So, are you ready to get butt kicked?" she smirked and slammed her fist into her other hand.

Seeing the sun blink away at the last second of its setting, Tarrlok turned to Korra. "It's time you learn how to blood bend." Walking away from the cabin directly towards a dense nearby forest, Tarrlok was ready to introduce her to his technique.

Korra followed unwillingly. "Are you sure we should be in the forest?" she asked nervously.

He smirked at her hesitance. Of course we should be here. There are many animals around to practice on. Just be quiet and watch. As he walked through forest very slowly, Tarrlok spotted a squirrel. Raising his arms, he blood bended the squirrel into walking towards Korra, who was only a few paces to Tarrlok's right. He was gentle and the squirrel didn't even try to squeal.

Korra swallowed as she leaned down to pet the animal, which was like Tarrlok's puppet now. "Well... It looks easier than it is..." she sighed.

"If you've ever bended water that you couldn't see before, it's the same basic idea." Tarrlok released the squirrel and it tested its muscles and fluffed it's tail before it gallivanted away. "A full moon makes it possible for you to bend an animal with the same idea. You find an animal to try on." He demanded.

"I've bended water I can't see..." she replied, her gaze following the squirrel. "Do you count?" she smirked. "Nothing would make me happier than forcing you to do something." she teased, poking his side.

"I'll count after you learn on small animals first. At this point, I would over power anything you tried on me. Just find an animal." He commanded.

She narrowed her eyes at his commanding tone and she slapped his arm annoyed, looking around. "There's a bird!" she noted a small bird on a nearby branch. Raising her arms, Korra concentrated on the liquid inside the animal, which moved the bird into place as she bended the blood inside it. She grinned, satisfied, opening her arms like wings, the bird did the same. "How am I doing?" she asked.

Tarrlok put on a somewhat satisfied half grin and admonished her, "Now be careful, when you control a bird you can't let it fall out of balance or it will fall to the ground because you won't know how to make it fly."

Korra twisted her arms and the bird limped blindly along the branch, without falling. It shrieked in pain and fear, but Korra tried to ignore it. She raised her arms, and moved her fingers, the bird started to move its wings, floating just a bit over the branch. "Look! It's flying!" she grinned.

"Be careful!" Tarrlok was fearful for the bird as it started to plummet towards earth, Korra tried to flap the wings, but she was uneven and the bird smashed into the ground, a few feathers snapped off of the bird.

"Ouch..." she walked towards the bird and picked it up. "Sorry fella..." she mumbled, placing it back, onto the branch noticing a bird's nest nearby. She turned to Tarrlok and sighed. "I failed... Again..."

"Don't be too hard on yourself, that was quite skillful for your first time." Looking deeper in the depths of the forest, Tarrlok lifted his arm and sensed a large creature. Pulling it towards him, a white tailed deer appeared through a bush. Proficiently, he controlled each leg as he commanded its movements into a trot around the two of them. "In time it'll be second nature to you." Letting go of his grip, Tarrlok watched the deer run off in terror. "Korra, bend it back here."

Korra blinked and bit her lip nervously. Taking a deep breath, she raised her arms, forcing the animal to freeze. Sweat was rolling down her brow as she concentrated, bending its legs to move. The animal slowly limped towards them and stopped in front of the Councilman. "How was that, Master?" she asked, in a rather teasing tone.

With an uncharacteristically wide smile, Tarrlok raised his hands. Breaking Korra's control with his own blood bending, he raised the animal into the air as if it were floating. "This is your next lesson: to bend an animal into the air." Tarrlok explained how it's possible to bend the blood in a specific direction as opposed to bending the blood in the muscles.

Korra smirked and snuck up behind him, tickling his sides, so that he lost control, and before he had a chance to regain it, Korra was already bending the animal again that had only fallen a foot. Copying Tarrlok's technique, the Avatar raised her arms, making the animal to float over the ground. Just a little bit.

"You've been learning blood bending exceptionally well! If you want a real thrill you'll try blood bending me." He smirked, testing her will.

Korra's eyes shined in an evil, amused way. "You're going to regret proposing this." she teased, leaving the animal on the ground and turning to him. Taking a deep breath, Korra raised her arms to bend the blood in Tarrlok's veins. Humans were harder to access.

Tarrlok relaxed as she controlled his movements in a slip shod fashion. While Tarrlok was a stronger water bender, he shut his eyes and let down all his barriers. For a minute or two he let her try to make him walk, run, and other various movements. Finally, he was ready to reject her control. With only a second of focus, Tarrlok opened his eyes and broke her control, but he also blood bended her in the process. He took great pleasure in her obvious discomfort. "Try to regain control." Although the councilmen knew he had a stronger grip, she might as well try.

Korra was taken aback, when Tarrlok took control just so easily. She growled lightly as she struggled against him, trying to force her own movement upon her body, so that she would regain control. After all, she was the Avatar, and one of the Avatar's abilities was that she was naturally more powerful than most benders. With a lot of effort, she managed to raise an arm and slightly break his control over her, but it was still harder than she had expected. Tarrlok began to wrestle to hold his control; he hadn't given her enough credit. She'd strengthened her abilities. They fought against each other, and five minutes later they were still pushing against each other's control. While the game of endurance couldn't last much longer, Tarrlok wouldn't let her over-power him. Tarrlok gave off more energy to try to regain full control, both the councilmen and the avatar battled to stay standing.

Korra grunted as the man regained control, but she wouldn't give up. She struggled against him for a while longer and finally managed to gain the upper hand. She forced him kneel to the ground, but at the same time, she kneeled to, as he was still holding a part of her in his grip. This game of endurance was severely draining their energy. Once again Tarrlok tried to gain more control, but he was impressed with how well Korra was staving off his powers. It had been a full ten minutes now, and they were sweating profusely even though they were enveloped in the cool night breeze.

Korra growled, determined to take him under her control again. She struggled against his grip, managing to break off his control over her, but she could still feel him not giving in. He wouldn't give up against her. Finally reaching the end of his rope from the exhaustion, Tarrlok relented and let her have full control.

Korra smirked, although she was exhausted, she forced him to stand up, then she bended him to limp over. She walked closer, holding up her grip, her eyes shining. "Someone got his butt kicked." she teased, before letting go and she almost collapsed on him by the effort.

Tarrlok managed to almost catch her, but he wasn't in any condition for any more bending. "I-I think we're done here..." Korra nodded, clawing his clothing weakly, in an attempt to keep herself standing. They stumbled back towards the cabin where he unlocked the door and they both collapsed on a couch in the entree way.

"Well, that was tiring..." she mumbled, lighting the ready fireplace with her bending. She looked up at him. "How did I do, Master?" Korra found that Tarrlok had already fallen asleep on the plush couch. She giggled softly and forced herself up. She searched the house and found a nice thick blanket, which she placed over him before hiding herself under it next to him and letting herself sleep as well.

At about 9am, Tarrlok opened his eyes and noticed that Korra was cuddled up next to him. He decided it wouldn't be a good idea to leave during her slumber. Korra shifted to make herself more comfortable, by resting her head on his chest, thinking it was a pillow. She giggled in her sleep, before being quiet again. Tarrlok shifted so he could hold her in his arms. If only the city could be just as calm and warm as this.

Korra yawned an hour later, slowly opening her eyes to look around. She realized, something warm was wrapped around her and it wasn't the blanket. Feeling her cheeks flash red, she cleared her throat. Tarrlok wasn't able to make eye contact, but he could tell that she'd awoken. "Well that was a nice night." He smiled.

Korra stretched. "Pretty comfy actually." she grinned, laying there and starring at the fire for a while. She turned around to face him. "So, how did I do last night, Master?" she raised an eyebrow.

For a second his skin went cold, Tarrlok remembered the battle. "Your skill is unlike anything I've ever trained. You have so much raw power at your command, I was surprised you could hold yourself so well against me."

"Well..." Korra paused, pulling the blanket around them. "I'm the Avatar." she shrugged. "I am supposed to posses more power than most benders, but it seemed like you were too tough to bring down, even for an Avatar." she grinned lightly, brushing a strand of loose hair from his face.

"True, you are the avatar, but I've been a master in this art for far longer than you. The idea that you picked it up so quickly is incredible. Katara has told me of how quickly Avatar Aang learned water bending, but I didn't really realize how quickly the Avatar can grasp the bending disciplines." He revered the Avatar's abilities with awe.

"Apart from air bending, this was probably the hardest thing I've done so far..." she yawned, shifting to make herself more comfortable.

"Not so, you took months to air bend and an hour to learn about half of my ability with blood bending and could go toe-to-toe with me in power."

She smirked. "I told you, you'd get a nice butt kicking." she teased, poking his nose.


End file.
